Tag Archives: leaving

I’ve not been blogging much recently, partly because of Christmas getting in the way. We had a fantastic Christmas this year. We really soaked it up, knowing that it would be our last proper winter Christmas that we could host. We went on country walks in the snow, mooched around farmers’ markets gathering supplies, went to see our village’s Christmas lights ceremony, and the season culminated in a fab Xmas day chez nous, with hubby’s delightfully laid-back family making it all rather wonderful.

Even though nobody really reads this blog yet, I feel obliged to update you, whoever you are, on all things Qatar! I am going to be posting a lot more now, as the move is suddenly much closer and my husband has now GONE.

So yes, he’s gone to Doha now, and I am absolutely devastated. I knew I would miss him, but I didn’t think it would be this much. I was trying to stay focused on the positives before he went (having the bed to myself, not having to find hanging space to dry 48 pairs of boxer shorts, eating milder curries, not being woken up by farts/snoring etc etc).

He went yesterday morning. We both cried a lot that morning and then I took him to Heathrow where we both cried some more. Then I went shopping (obviously) to avoid coming home, but when I finally did have to come home, to my empty house, I cried a bit more. There was a whole lot of crying going on yesterday.

Today, I just feel empty, like a piece of me is missing. It’s horrible. I never thought I could miss anyone this much. I’ve tried distraction techniques, such as more shopping (obviously) and putting the telly on, but I can’t even find the telly funny at the moment. So I have decided to acknowledge and feel the pain, and eventually it will pass and I can move on.

I have spoken to him on Skype a few times, and he seems to be enjoying himself, although he did say he was a bit worried about how easy he is finding it – he thinks maybe it hasn’t hit him yet, so he’s kind of waiting for the crash barrier to appear. I reckon he’ll be OK though, he’s got plenty of amazing qualities which will see him through and he is prepared to deal with any difficult times ahead.

He arrived late last night, checked into his hotel and Skyped me straight away. This morning he had a wander around City Centre Mall, where he got his ID photos with the compulsory blue background sorted out (apparently he needs about 50 of these and we couldn’t find anywhere in the UK offering a blue background!). He also got a pay-as-you-go SIM for his phone to save on racking up a huge UK bill.

Then he met up with his old boss/friend and went for a BBQ and a bit of shisha at their house. Tonight he seems pretty relaxed, with a semi early night planned for his 745am pick up tomorrow for his first day at work! I am so proud of him and I can’t wait to hear about his first day.

His employers have put him up in the Retaj hotel in Doha for a week and then he’s on his own – he is hoping to sort out some sort of serviced apartment from then on. I hope he gets a nice one, as I will be living there too when I go out, but they seem to be quite expensive and his housing allowance is only 12,000 a month.

Back here, I’ve just sold 2 chairs on eBay and am about to start uploading a whole lot more furniture. We have made some decisions about furniture and removals which I will update you about tomorrow, as this post is getting a bit waffley.